Is that illegal? A list of everything NJ looking to ban or prohibit

Forget the tax — lawmakers in New Jersey are aiming at completely banning plastic shopping bags along with a list of other products, including plastic straws and polystyrene food containers.

We took a look through the Legislature's bills and found even more things lawmakers are seeking to ban and prohibit in the Garden State — everything from certain words and phrases to certain types of abortion and technologies.

The proposals are meant to protect consumers, children and the environment. But will they?

Here are some of the bills with links to the full text of the legislation.

No more plastic bags

A1218 provides for a decrease and eventual ban on use of non-compostable plastic grocery bags.

The end of styrofoam?

Don't say 'illegal aliens'

A428 and S1446 replace references to "alien" and "illegal alien" in statutes with "foreign national" and "undocumented foreign national," respectively; prohibits use of those terms by executive branch agencies.

From the statement: "The United States is a nation of immigrants, and as such, our laws should discontinue the use of terms that ostracize those in our society who may have been born elsewhere. Regardless of status, immigrants to our nation are first and foremost human beings. Removing the terms “alien” and “illegal alien” from this State’s laws shows respect to the hundreds of millions of descendants of immigrants who call the United States home."

Antibiotics for sick animals only

ACR19 expresses support for national ban of non-therapeutic use of antibiotics on livestock.

From the statement: "The development of antibiotics has provided life-saving remedies for many common ailments, but the indiscriminate utilization of these antibiotics for non-therapeutic uses in livestock is decreasing the efficacy of antibiotics and creating a tremendous health crisis."

Target on drones

A1765 regulates and prohibits certain operation of drones.

From the statement: "Under the bill, it is a disorderly persons offense to operate a drone: 1) knowingly or intentionally in a manner that endangers the life or property of another; 2) to take or assist in the taking of wildlife; and 3) while under the influence of intoxicating liquor, a narcotic, hallucinogenic, or habit-producing drug or with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or more by weight of alcohol. Disorderly persons offenses are punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to six months, a fine of up to $1,000, or both."

Sorry to burst your bubble

A4894 and S3288 from the previous legislative session allows municipalities to prohibit release of balloons.

From the statement: "The release of balloons into the air is a hazard to marine life because when the balloons deflate and land in the ocean, sea creatures ingest them, which can be disruptive to their digestive systems and cause them to starve to death. Marine life also can get tangled up in the ribbons that are attached to balloons, which can cause them physical damage."

No TVs that spy on you

A2232 prohibits television voice recognition features from collecting or recording users without notice; prohibits use or sale of recordings for advertising purposes.

From the statement: "This bill makes it an unlawful practice and a violation of the consumer fraud act to sell or offer for sale voice recognition features in a connected television without clearly and conspicuously notifying the user, or a person designated by the user, and obtaining consent prior to or at the time of installation or initial setup of the connected television and its voice recognition features."

Sponsored by Assemblyman Ronald Dancer, R-Ocean.

Hunger-Free Students' Bill of Rights Act

From the statement: "Under the provisions of the bill a school district is not permitted to [p]ublicly identify or stigmatize a student who cannot pay for a school meal, for example, by requiring that the student sit at a separate table or wear a wristband, hand stamp, or identifying mark or by serving the student an alternative meal ..."

Sponsored by Sen. M. Teresa Ruiz, D-Essex.

Protection of Fetuses from Dismemberment Abortion Act

From the statement: "'Dismemberment abortion' is defined as, with the purpose of causing the death of a fetus, knowingly dismembering a fetus and extracting the fetus one piece at a time from the uterus through the use of clamps, grasping forceps, tongs, scissors, or similar instruments that, through the convergence of two rigid levers, slice, crush, or grasp a portion of the body of the fetus in order to cut or rip it off."

Sponsored by Assemblyman Ronald Dancer, R-Ocean.

Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act

From the statement: "It is the purpose of this Legislature to assert a compelling governmental interest in protecting the lives of unborn children from the stage at which substantial medical evidence indicates they are capable of feeling pain."

Steven's Law

From the statement: "Over the past three to four decades, non-wood bats have almost completely replaced wood bats in youth and scholastic baseball and softball leagues. It is generally accepted that non-wood bats hit the ball with greater force and velocity than wood bats, thereby reducing the amount of time a defender has to perceive and properly react to the ball."

Sponsored by Sen. Patrick Diegnan Jr., D-Middlesex.

Down with vice principals

A3713 eliminates local school superintendents and prohibits schools from having more than one assistant or vice-principal.

Sponsored by Assemblyman Robert Auth, R-Bergen.

They can't live here

A1456 and S311 prohibit sex offenders from living near schools, child care centers or playgrounds.

From the statement: "The bill would also make it a disorderly persons offense for a sex offender whose risk of re-offense has been assessed as moderate or high to reside within 500 feet of an elementary or secondary school, playground or child care center."

Free Means Free Act

From the statement: "Specifically, the bill provides that it would be an unlawful practice for a person to advertise, offer, or sell free products if the person: (1) assesses a return or restocking fee for the return of the product or another product sold in conjunction with the free product; (2) assesses a cancellation fee for early termination of a contracted service and the cancellation fee incorporates any actual value or cost of the product; or (3) includes any amount to cover the cost of the product within a bill regularly assessed to a person for the contracted service."

Sponsored by Assemblywoman Annette Quijano, D-Union.

Alexandra's Law

A2212 prohibits the operation of motor vehicle with detectable amount of drugs in blood.

From the statement: "The sponsor intends that this bill be known as 'Alexandra’s Law' in honor of Alexandra Tenneriello, a 19-year old from Jackson, New Jersey who was killed in a motor vehicle crash involving a driver against whom charges of driving while under the influence of drugs could not be proved under current law."

Sponsored by Assemblyman Ronald Dancer, R-Ocean.

Nosey's Law

A1923 and S1093 prohibit the use of elephants and other wild or exotic animals in traveling animal acts.

Don't feed the deer

From the statement: "The bill would additionally establish a new, and general, prohibition against the feeding of deer and the enticing of deer to feed through the placement or improper storage of edible materials or deer attractants. The bill would, however, explicitly exempt from this general prohibition the authorized use and placement of bait for deer hunting purposes, the feeding of deer at a deer farm, and the unintentional feeding of deer."

Bans certain animal handlers

From the statement: "This bill would establish certain practices and lack of care for animals as animal cruelty violations and would prohibit a person found guilty of, or liable for, an animal cruelty offense or certain other animal related offenses from operating as a breeder of cats or dogs, or being an employee or acting on behalf of any organization or business in a position that would bring the person in direct contact with any animal, including but not limited to, an animal rescue organization facility, animal breeder, kennel, pet shop, shelter, or pound."

Sponsored by Assemblywoman Amy Handlin, R-Monmouth.

Bans certain animal adoptions

From the statement: "The bill establishes a prohibition against the animal cruelty offender from adopting, purchasing, or engaging in any part of breeding animals after being required to register and during any period of time when the animal cruelty offender is required to register."

'Government Reality Check Act'

A567 prohibits public employers from providing certain benefits to public employees, restricts gifts to public employees, restricts travel by public employees, and imposes post-employment restriction on public contracting employees.